


Come Back to Me

by havokwreaker (wryandwatchful)



Category: Until Dawn (Video Game)
Genre: After Hannah and Beth's death, Borderline Personality Disorder, Climbing Class, Coitus Interruptus, Comfort, Established Relationship, Hurt/Comfort, Josh is Sad, M/M, Mental Breakdown, Mental Instability, Pre-Canon, Violence, but Chris is okay with it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-22
Updated: 2015-09-22
Packaged: 2018-04-22 20:54:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 754
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4850201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wryandwatchful/pseuds/havokwreaker
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Josh..." he whispered. "Come on back, cochise. Don't go down that far. Come back to me, buddy." He held on tightly as his friend began to growl and thrash against him in his hysteria. Chris felt tears of his own trickle down his face as he fought his friend.<br/>"Okay, okay...h-hey. Josh, listen. Remember the song?</p><p>F-frère Jacques, Frère Jacques, Dormez-vous?"</p>
            </blockquote>





	Come Back to Me

"Josh?" 

A warm hand cupped his chin and tilted his head up. Josh opened his red-rimmed eyes slowly and met Chris's concerned gaze, the furrowed brow and pouted lips spelling out his friends worry.

"A-am I hurting you?" Chris asked quietly and stilled his movements. Josh bit his lip and shook his head, blinking away tears that began to blur his vision. He opened his mouth to speak, but a sob came out instead. Chris withdrew from his boyfriend, manoeuvring so that he could lay on his side and pull Josh's shaking body against him.

"Hey, shhh. It's okay, Josh. It's okay. Just breathe." He whispered softly and held him close. Unfortunately, Chris was used to this by now, but comforting Josh during his attacks was never a burden to him. Ever since they'd become best friends in the third grade, Chris knew that Josh was...different. He'd been diagnosed with a personality disorder when they started fifth grade, and Chris had made it part of his "job" as Josh's best friend to ask him every day if he'd taken his medicine, and to be there for him when he had an episode. Whether that meant holding Josh back from killing a stray dog that followed them to school one day, to singing "Frere Jaque" to calm him during his more severe attacks. It was just something Chris had always done for him. After the "incident" with Hannah and Beth last year though, it'd become a daily struggle for them both. 

At first, Chris had asked Josh what he would hear and see, but after a few descriptions of Hannah and Beth's intestines pouring out from a boars mouth, Chris thought it best that Josh not recount his visions for both of their sakes. 

"I should-...should've d-done something. I sh-...I-" he gasped, pressing his whole body against Chris's chest as he fought the swirl of emotions tearing through his body. Chris shushed him and ran his fingers through the man's hair. "It wasn't your fault. It wasn't you, Josh." He said firmly. 

Josh heard it repeated again, but in a different voice. One that was deeper, and faintly familiar. 

'It wasn't YOU, Joshua. It was THEM. THEY did it.' It said. 

Chris felt Josh begin whispering against his skin. "Yeah. THEY did it...yeah. It was THEM." Chis's heart broke when Josh's frantic mumbling took a darker turn. "I-I'm gonna bleed 'um...a-and gut 'um...like pigs. Yeah...Like little pigs." He began to giggle darkly. "I'm gonna _HUFF_ , and-and I'm gonna _PUFF_ ," he dug his fingernails into Chris's chest, blood welling up under his nails. His friend gasped sharply.

"Josh. Hey. Look at me. Come on back, man. C'mon, Josh." He groaned and tilted his friend's face up. Josh's eyes were wide and unfocused and tears still rolled down his cheeks. Chris grit his teeth against the pain and pressed their foreheads together. "Josh..." he whispered. "Come on back, cochise. Don't go down that far. Come back to me, buddy." He held on tightly as his friend began to growl and thrash against him in his hysteria. Chris felt tears of his own trickle down his face as he fought his friend.  
"Okay, okay...h-hey. Josh, listen. Remember the song?

F-frère Jacques, Frère Jacques, Dormez-vous?, Dormez-vous""

Chris began to sing softly, closing his eyes against the pain as Josh continued to tear at his chest. "D-dormez-vous?" He shuddered. As he sang, Josh gradually began to still in his arms. After a while, he stopped crying and his hands stilled. He exhaled raggedly against Chris's lips and they met gazes again. Josh seemed to have come back to himself. For now, atleast. 

"Chris...I'm-" He was cut off as Chris pressed a soft kiss to his lips. "It's okay." 

"It's not okay... I'm sorry." He whispered sadly and rolled away from his embrace. "I'm such a burden, man." He frowned, rubbing the tears off his cheeks. 

Chris watched his boyfriend retreat into himself; something that had only gotten worse over the past few months. He felt like he was losing him to this illness. Chris tugged the blankets up around them and pulled Josh back against him. "You aren't a burden." He whispered softly and peppered kisses against his shoulder. "I love you, Josh." There was no response. Chris sighed quietly and cuddled closer, wincing slightly as his bloodied chest brushed Josh's back. Chris had almost drifted off when he felt Josh's chest rumble as he spoke.

"I love you too, Chris."


End file.
